clay lee: The Anatomy of a Foreclosure - Information for College Station Homeowners and Home Buyers
- 08/04/10 12:55 PM
One of the most prevalent, hard-hitting issues affecting the real estate market today is foreclosure. Most people, while terrified of this word, do not understand the specifics, the process, and the anatomy surrounding the concept. While it may be a worrisome topic, it does not have to incite the terror associated with it; simply familiarizing yourself with the facts can help you rest easier. Whether you are a College Station or Bryan homeowner worried about default, a homeowner who simply wants to understand the basics, or a potential home buyer looking for a deal on a home, this information is absolutely (0 comments)

It is an industry fact that staged homes sell faster. When your home has been properly staged, you will have true confidence that the first impression will be a positive and lasting one. The main point of staging is to showcase the benefits of the house in the best possible light. It (1 comments)

clay lee: Magnificent Bryan Home - 701 Ellen Lee is a MUST SEE!
- 07/20/10 01:08 PM
Once in a great while, a Realtor gets the distinct pleasure of listing a truly breathtaking home. I am proud to say I have listed and sold many unique, beautiful homes in College Station and Bryan during my 10+ years as a Realtor in this area. But today I am beyond thrilled to present my newest listing: an absolutely exquisite, treasure of a home nestled away in the quiet of Bryan.
701 Ellen Lee is a remarkable, one-of-a-kind luxury home set on a rare one acre tract in the heart of an established neighborhood. The home spans a luxurious, wide open 4,500 square (0 comments)

clay lee: A Home Inspection Provides Buyer Protection!
- 07/20/10 01:05 PM
Home inspections have always been important for and requested by the smart buyer; now more than ever, an inspection is becoming an absolute necessity. Whether you are looking to purchase a luxury home, a mid-priced home, or a low-priced home, an inspection is equally important. And if you are one of the many consumers interested in taking advantage of the rising number of foreclosures occurring in College Station and Bryan, take note!

Home buyers must ensure they know exactly what kind of house they are purchasing, and this can best be achieved through an inspection. Not only do inspectors need (0 comments)

clay lee: College Station Not the Only Area With Reduced Home Prices
- 07/19/10 03:56 PM
As cited in yesterday's article, almost 60 homes in College Station and Bryan have had their asking prices slashed in the recent months since the Homebuyer Tax Credit expired. Though we are certainly seeing the effects in our own community, this is a national trend that continues to grow with the passing summer months.
For example, Trulia.com reports that Southern California (one of the most expensive real estate areas in the nation) has seen its real estate landscape littered with high-profile price drops. Nicolas Cage's English Tudor in Bel-Air has been reduced an amazing 50% to $17.5 million. Suzanne Somers' home, (0 comments)

clay lee: College Station Home Buyers: This is Better than the Tax Credit!
- 07/19/10 03:19 PM
Home shoppers who missed the April 30 deadline for the Homebuyer Tax Credit ($8,000 tax refund for first time buyers) may be getting the better end of the deal after all. For a variety of reasons, home buyers could now save much more than the $8,000 tax refund.
For starters, in some neighborhoods and price ranges, sellers are dropping their prices because buyers are now harder to find; this has to do in part with the homebuyer tax credit expiring. During March and April, home sales increased drastically since buyers were scrambling to make the deadline for the tax credit. Since this (0 comments)

clay lee: College Station's Historic District
- 07/14/10 12:27 PM
One of the most beautiful spots for real estate in the College Station area is nestled away in a quiet corner of the Southside of the city. The Historic District falls within the square of Anderson, Welsh, George Bush, and Holleman. And though there are many historic sites all throughout that area, it mainly refers to the homes on Lee, Pershing, Park Place, and Dexter.
The Historic District features homes of a refined, elegant charm. Most of these homes are gorgeous, well-preserved homes with years of character. You will find remarkable houses built in an era when sturdy and well-constructed were (2 comments)

clay lee: A&M Consolidated in College Station Named one of America's Best High Shools!
- 07/14/10 12:24 PM
Newsweek issues a yearly feature wherein they rank America's Best High Schools. Just over 1600 schools - only six percent of all public schools in the U.S. - made the list. For the fifth consecutive year, A&M Consolidated High School has made this prestigious list. This year, they are ranked at #970 out of the thousands upon thousands of high schools across the nation.
The ranking is based on participation on Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) exams. Schools are ranked by their Challenge Index, which is calculated by dividing number of students who can take AP/IB exams by the number of graduating (0 comments)

clay lee: Should You Rent or Buy College Station Real Estate?
- 07/12/10 03:05 PM
A big question I get, especially currently as people are trying to save money, is: "Should I buy or rent a home?" Whether it is more financially sound to buy or rent a home varies greatly across the nation. For example, in a place like Omaha, Nebraska it is better to rent as a result of the huge gap between rental and purchase prices. But here in College Station, it makes more fiscal sense to purchase a home, especially if you intend to stay in the area for at least five years.
Trulia, the real estate site, puts out a rent vs. buy index for (0 comments)

clay lee: Avoiding Foreclosure Prevention Scams in College Station
- 07/08/10 01:25 PM
With mortgage delinquencies across the nation at an all time high, many desperate homeowners are seeking to avoid foreclosure at any cost. The problem is, there are plenty of scam artists out to take advantage of that fact. For scam artists, this high level of foreclosures is seen as an opportunity to profit off of others' misfortunes. Between October 2009 to April 2010, community development groups handled over 10,000 reports of foreclosure-prevention scams.

Here in College Station, there have not been many reports regarding foreclosure-prevention scams. But if you are a homeowner, it is still a good idea to make (2 comments)

clay lee: 4th of July at Pebble Creek College Station, TX
- 07/01/10 04:23 PM
The Pebble Creek Homeowners Association will be holding the fourth annual 4th at the Creek parade and celebration July 3rd, 2010 at the Pebble Creek Country Club! Pebble Creek homeowners are encouraged to join in the festivities of celebrating the 4th of July with their friends and neighbors. Activities will include a parade, a "Most Patriotic" contest (categories are: Most Patriotic Boy, Girl, Adult, Golf Cart, and Pet), snow cones, a rock wall, and an inflated double lane super slide. The fun starts at 8:30 a.m., with the parade beginning at 9:00 a.m.
To pull off this exciting, patriotic event, the (0 comments)

clay lee: Available Foreclosures in College Station and Bryan, TX
- 06/29/10 12:43 PM
Purchasing a foreclosed property can be a great investment for numerous reasons. The biggest benefit is that you are purchasing a distressed property that has to be sold because of an unfortunate financial situation. This should result in a below market price purchasing opportunity.
Fortunately, our area has not been nearly as hard hit with foreclosures as some parts of the country. However, there are still quite a few available foreclosed properties in Bryan and College Station. I have listed below the current properties for which information has been released this month.
1725 Harvey Mitchell CS $154,900.001301 Columbus Ave Bryan $58,900.0017321-25 (1 comments)

clay lee: Physician's Relocation Services: All About College Station Location!
- 06/29/10 12:41 PM
College Station is known for Texas A&M University, the Vet School, Med School, and the extensive research done in this area. Additionally, we have beautiful neighborhoods, schools, parks, and attractions. But one of the great things about College Station that is easy to overlook is the exceptional location. It is a bustling yet peaceful small city nestled away in the calm of Central Texas.
Located only an hour and a half from Houston, two hours from Austin, and three hours from Dallas, it is right in the heart of anywhere you would want to be in Texas. With these cities only a short (0 comments)

clay lee: College Station Home Sales for May
- 06/28/10 02:49 PM
May turned out to be a slow month for home sales in the Bryan College Station region. Though many homes normally sell in May and June (summer is a peak time for the real estate market), numbers were depressed compared to those from past years. The 2010 monthly average sales price for May was $161,453 on the whole, compared to 2009's figure of $171,091.
Additionally, though May is the beginning of the peak sales time, its sales were drastically lower than that of this past April's. This is due in large part to the Homebuyer's Tax Credit, which encouraged high numbers of home sales as (0 comments)

clay lee: Physician's Relocation Services: Education in College Station, TX
- 06/28/10 02:42 PM
Continuing the informational services offered in my Physician's Relocation Services package, I will be discussing the top-rate schools we have in College Station/Bryan for those in K-12. College Station I.S.D. has many excellent schools to choose from depending upon the area in which you live. There are also fine private schools such as Allen Academy, St. Joseph's and St. Michael's.
College Station I.S.D. boasts very high levels on their 2008 TAKS district scores: Reading/ELA 95%, Writing 95%, Math 89%, Science 84%, Social Studies 95%. Additionally, 24.5% of students are enrolled in advanced courses, 87.4% score above criterion on AP exams, and 72.7% of students (0 comments)

clay lee: Realtors, Potential Home Buyers - I'd Appreciate your Input!
- 06/23/10 02:36 PM
I am usually offering expert real estate advice and news to all of my readers and the potential home buyers of College Station/Bryan. But today I'd like to ask for your help! We are trying something new and I would truly appreciate your input.
Generally when I advertise a home, I use the standard picture tour to give additional insight into the home. It shows the different still frame pictures of a home, from front exterior, all the rooms, to backyard. But I've recently done a walk through tour for one of my properties, where I walk through the home and describe in detail all that (2 comments)

clay lee: LEED Certified Buildings a New Trend in College Station
- 06/23/10 12:21 PM
Bryan saw its first LEED certified building go up in 2009. College Station has registered 11 LEED certified buildings for 2010, including many at Texas A&M University as well as College Station High School. This relatively new trend in building is beginning to make the move from public establishments to homes across the state and country. So why consider LEED building for your new home?
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a third-party certification program for high-performance buildings developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. This organization includes members from a wide range of vocations including architects, engineers, developers (0 comments)

clay lee: Physician's Relocation: College Station Medical Facilities
- 06/22/10 02:01 PM
In my previous post regarding the Physician's Relocation Services I offer, I discussed the general information one would be curious about when considering the move to College Station. In this post, I'd like to cover our excellent medical facilities here in the Bryan and College Station region.
The College Station Medical Center, locally known as The Med, is a state-of-the-art facility with 150 licensed beds, 520 hospital employees, and is accredited by The Joint Commission, Lab Accredidation. In addition to the many specialties for which they offer care (to include allergy, endocrinology, neurosurgery, oncology, plastic surgery, rheumatology, and many others), they provide an extensive (0 comments)

clay lee: The Best Roofing Materials for Your Home
- 06/22/10 01:59 PM
The shape and pitch of your roof are important to the home's aesthetic and structural qualities. But just as essential is the material used to build it. Roofing materials can lend to a home's character, but they can also dictate how long the roof will last and how expensive it is to maintain. I've listed below some pros and cons of some popular roofing materials, and how they fare in our central Texas climate.
Asphalt/composite shingles: Most widely used choice, can be installed by most contractors. On the lower end, these can last 15-20 years. The heavier and costlier shingles can survive 40 (2 comments)

clay lee: Clay's Physician's Relocation Services to College Station
- 06/16/10 01:44 PM
With the huge growth that College Station/Bryan is experiencing, both on the Texas A&M campus and the Health Science Center, there is a much greater need for physicians in our area, and it is growing daily. The Med, St. Joseph's, Scott & White, and the A&M Medical School are all experiencing this demand. If you are a physician interested in relocating to the Bryan College Station area, please consider taking advantage of the Physician's Relocation Services I offer. This complete package will take the stress out of moving, and will make your transition to our area as relaxed and simple as (0 comments)

Disclaimer: ActiveRain, Inc. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site.
These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them
make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles,
that are written by the members of this community.